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August 18, 2013
Wisconsin/Minnesota - The U.S. Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has warned workers and residents in the Iron Range of Minnesota and in Wisconsin’s Penokee Hills that asbestos-like grunerite could be released during iron ore sampling or mining in that area and that precautions should be taken to protect individuals from inhaling the mineral’s fibers.
A story that aired on Wisconsin Public Radio profiles the concerns of the DNR in regards to small-scare bulk sampling that has been proposed by Gogebic Taconite, an iron ore mining company that’s currently in the middle of a controversy concerning the lease of a 22-mile-long property close to the Bad River Band tribal reservation in the Penokee Hills. Opponents believe the mining will harm the environment and cause health concerns.
In the meantime, the DNR is carefully examining the properties of grunerite, which can occur in a crystal form that is fibrous, much like some types of asbestos. If that’s the case at Gogebic Taconite’s proposed mining site, there could be a problem, says Department of Natural Resources hydrogeologist Larry Lynch. Right now, however, Lynch thinks the current small-scale sampling due to take place at that site shortly should be safe.
“We haven’t completed our review yet, but that may be sufficient,” he says. “It doesn’t mean it won’t be an issue in the future if there is a mining project proposed. Certainly with a full-scale mining operation you move much more material; there’s much greater particulate emissions.”
A recent costly study performed at the University of Minnesota centered on the taconite industry and mine workers in Minnesota’s Iron Range and determined that the number of cases of mesothelioma in that region was three times higher than the rate for the remainder of Minnesota. Mesothelioma is attributed to the inhalation of asbestos fibers or – in this case – asbestos-like fibers. During mining operations, the fibers can become airborne or wind up in the water, resulting in asbestos exposure.
“We’re a long ways away in this project to really understanding how waste material is being handled [or] what the nature of the waste material is,” says Lynch, who noted that he believes there are ways to control the release of the asbestos-like fibers if they are indeed present in the Penokee Hills.
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